Windows XP & 12.04 Reinstall Mess

[eddiedee]

Hello - First let me preface this by saying had I the opportunity to do things differently I would have. I upgraded the Mobo & CPU and wanted to move from 32bit 12.04 to 64bit 12.04 and re-install windows XP.

Here is the scenario:
Ubuntu 12.04 32bit and Windows XP dual booting happily on the same physical drive, (2 NTFS parts, XP & Storage, 2 EXT4 parts Linux & Swap)
Upgrade Mobo & CPU (z77-ds3h & i5 3570K)
Install from USB, Boot into 12.04 64bit without issue
Run Windows set-up from disk, new installation in existing Windows partition
Boots directly into Windows XP, all data/partitions still present on disk viewable in XP
I knew XP would overwrite MBR w/ windows bootloader so I booted w/ USB into linux-secure-remix to run boot-repair & re-install Grub
run boot-repair, restart, machine boots into windows
Boot from USB w 12.04 64bit ISO, run install, no partitions on found on dev\sda, neither the 12.04 or Windows installations are found by the installer
Install gives the option to erase everything (very bad, I must save the data in the NTFS storage partition) or do something else. Doing something else yields no visible partitions on \sda

sudo fdisk -l lists the NTFS & ext4 partitions, they are still present.

sudo parted /dev/sda print yields "Error: Can't have overlapping partitions" I would copy fdisk but am not at my pc right now;
sda1 - NTFS
sda2 - NTFS
sda3 - extended (to ~xxxxx99)
sda4 - Ext4 (swap)
sda5 - Linux (to ~xxxx999)
Note I did not change any partitions during this install cycle (or intend to, boot-repair perhaps?), the configuration was working perfectly for some time though I cant be 100% sure that sda5 was within the extended sda3 partition.

I have no idea how to proceed. The disk was originally partitioned with gparted.

OS wise I think I have everything where I want it but can only boot into XP and don't seem to have a partition table ubuntu can see.

Thanks in advance.

[dino99]

from the liveusb, open a terminal, and install/reinstall grub:

sudo grub-install /dev/sda
sudo update-grub

then reboot on the hdd (select that disk too into bios)

[oldfred]

If you have overlapping partitions, some partitioning tool did not write table correctly. And then many tools do not work as partitions must be correctly read for them to work.

First backup partition table, use your drive for sdX or sda, sdb etc.
sudo sfdisk -d /dev/sdX > parts.txt

Post details
sudo fdisk -lu

[eddiedee]

I haven't touched the disk partitions in over a year. If anything changed partition wise it could have been the Windows XP installer or boot-repair, neither seems likely.

ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ sudo sfdisk -d /dev/sda > parts.txt
Warning: extended partition does not start at a cylinder boundary.
DOS and Linux will interpret the contents differently.

ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ sudo fdisk -lu
omitting empty partition (5)

Disk /dev/sda: 1000.2 GB, 1000204886016 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 121601 cylinders, total 1953525168 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x117d117c

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sda1 * 63 163837951 81918944+ 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT
/dev/sda2 163837952 1748725759 792443904 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT
/dev/sda3 1748727806 1953523711 102397953 5 Extended
/dev/sda4 1947514880 1953523711 3004416 82 Linux swap / Solaris
/dev/sda5 1748727808 1947514879 99393536 83 Linux

Disk /dev/sdb: 37.0 GB, 37019566080 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 4500 cylinders, total 72303840 sectors
Units = sectors of 1 * 512 = 512 bytes
Sector size (logical/physical): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
I/O size (minimum/optimal): 512 bytes / 512 bytes
Disk identifier: 0x4f5a4f59

Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/sdb1 * 63 72276434 36138186 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT

[eddiedee]

http://paste.ubuntu.com/5616529/

[oldfred]

It looks like you swap changed from sda6 which would be inside the extended partition to sda4 which has to be outside extended partition, but still is inside it.
You can use the sfdisk output and change the sda4 to sda6 and reimport it.
But I think you can just use fdisk and have it rewrite partition table.

Do not press w unless it looks ok. It may reorder other partitions, but in your case I do not think anything else will change. Btu always good to have LiveCD/DVD/Flash handy.

You can reorder the partition with fdisk:
sudo fdisk /dev/sda
x # enter expert mode
f # fix partition table
r # return
p # to print
v # to verify partition
if ok
w # write the changes to disk
q # quit

Error on cylinder boundry has not appled since drives went over 8GB. BIOS should be set to Large or LBA not IDE?

[nibal]

@eddiedee:
> Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
> /dev/sda1 * 63 163837951 81918944+ 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT
> /dev/sda2 163837952 1748725759 792443904 7 HPFS/NTFS/exFAT
> /dev/sda3 1748727806 1953523711 102397953 5 Extended
> /dev/sda4 1947514880 1953523711 3004416 82 Linux swap / Solaris
> /dev/sda5 1748727808 1947514879 99393536 83 Linux

I think I see your problem. /dev/sda3 is your extended table. It is not an actual partition per se, but lists the space occupied by all (subsequent) extended partitions.
However, its type seems wrong: Extended (5). Mine is W95 Ext'd (LBA) (f). That's why Ubuntu doesn't recognize your partitions, and fdisk reports overlapping ones.
It's easy to correct the type from within fdisk:

sudo fdisk /dev/sda
m                                                              // List menu of available ops
t                                                              // Change partition's system id

However, before you do it, it is a dangerous operation, you better wait for oldFred, to see what he says about it.
It won't touch your NTFS partitions, only your Linux ones, which you don't care anyway. Also you waste space between your partitions.
Once you fix your problem, you may want to go back and tighten them up a bit.

BR,
Nikos

[eddiedee]

I tried to re-order 4 to 6 but was unable:

Command (m for help): x

Expert command (m for help): f
Nothing to do. Ordering is correct already.

Thinking further about this, I do recall the swap being after Linux prior to this failed XP/12.04 re-installation. I wonder which installer messed with my partitions, must have been windows.

[nibal]

I tried to re-order 4 to 6 but was unable:

Command (m for help): x

Expert command (m for help): f
Nothing to do. Ordering is correct already.

Why would you do such thing? You just need to change the ID (t) of dev/sda3 from 5 to f. No expert mode needed. I recommend waiting for oldFred.

Nikos

[eddiedee]

I was doing what oldFred advised, see the post above yours.